I Didn't See That Coming
by Joseph Haney
Summary: Elsa returns to the Northuldra camp late at night, and finds Honeymaren sleeping in her tent.


Elsa let out a small laugh as she slid off of Nokk's back, the horse-like water spirit stomping on the ground and lightly nudging her before turning and trotting back to the pond it had come from. She watched it leave, then turned and started walking through the Northuldra camp, making her way toward her tent. The sun had set hours before, while she was still in Ahtohallan, and most of the tents were dark as the people within them slept.

She successfully managed to make it to the tent without making any noise, but paused as she noticed a faint pink glow coming from inside. _Not again_, she thought as she pushed back the flap covering the entrance.

"Bruni!" she hissed as she stepped inside. "We've talked about this! You can't be running around inside the tents with your fire lit!" Her eyes darted around the tent and quickly found the salamander laying on the ground in the center of the tent. He perked up as she knelt down next to him, letting out a chirp as she lifted her hand producing a small flurry above him to put out his flames. Once the flames were extinguished, she picked him up, bringing him up to her eye level.

"You do realize you could have burned my tent down, right?" Elsa asked, doing her best to imitate the pointed tone her mother would use whenever Elsa and Anna got caught breaking a rule. It always seemed to work, at least for a little while, on the sisters.

Bruni, on the other hand, was having none of it, electing instead to crawl up her arm and lightly nuzzle her cheek as if in an effort to placate her. Much to Elsa's chagrin, it worked as she found her annoyance with the spirit fading.

"Alright, alright," she said, picking Bruni up and bringing him back to where she could see him. She rolled her eyes slightly at what she was sure was a self-satisfied look on the spirit's face, but was unable to stop a small smile from spreading across her face. "You're impossible," she said. "What are you doing in here, anyway?"

Bruni turned and looked back down toward the ground where he'd been laying when she'd come in. Elsa followed his gaze and noticed a bowl sitting on the ground. Curious, she moved to pick it up, Bruni moving back to her shoulder as she did so.

The bowl was warm, presumably from the fire spirit's flames, and she caught the smell of Ryder's famous stew, which was made of various mushrooms, herbs, and plants that grew around the forest. There didn't seem to be any specific recipe for it as it tasted different each time he made it, but it was filling and made for a decent meal most of the time. This particular batch smelled particularly good and Elsa felt her stomach growl as she realized just how hungry she was.

"Were you keeping this warm for me?" she asked Bruni, who let out an affirmative chirp in response. She lifted the spoon that was sitting in the bowl and took a small taste. The stew didn't taste quite as good as it smelled, but it was far from Ryder's worst attempt. Even if it had been, Elsa was hungry enough that she swallowed a few more spoonfuls of the stew, pausing only to offer a bit to Bruni before finishing it. Once she was done, she looked back to the spirit.

"Do you know who left this here?" she asked. "I'd like to know who to thank."

Bruni looked thoughtful for a moment before leaping from her hand and scurrying to the far side of the tent where, for the first time, Elsa noticed a figure laying on her bed mat. Frowning, she moved closer to get a look at who it was. Bruni again lit his flame, keeping it low, but casting enough light to reveal the figure's face.

"Honeymaren?"

Elsa blinked in surprise. She wasn't sure who she was expecting to see, but it wasn't the young shepherdess. She looked down at Bruni, who didn't seem to be surprised at all. In fact, he seemed delighted, as if he were in on some sort of secret that he was now gleefully revealing. After casting one final glance between Elsa and Honeymaren, he scampered out of the tent with a playful chirp.

Elsa let out a small chuckle and shook her head. In many ways, Bruni reminded him of Anna, especially when she was a young girl. Not that she would ever admit that to either of them. In the meantime, she turned her attention back to Honeymaren, who was starting to stir. Elsa gave her a small smile as she opened her eyes.

"Elsa?" she said as she sat up, blinking sleep from her eyes. "You're back?"

"No, you're dreaming," Elsa teased.

Honeymaren chuckled. "I've had worse dreams."

"What are you doing in here?" Elsa asked as she took a seat on the bedding next to Honeymaren. "I seem to recall that you have a perfectly functional bed in your own tent. Or is Ryder snoring again?"

"No, he's out with the herd tonight. I…I just wanted to make sure you had something to eat when you got back and…only you came back later than I'd expected and…" she trailed off as she failed to stifle a yawn. "I guess I drifted off while I was waiting."

"I guess so," Elsa said with a friendly laugh. "I appreciate the thought. And the stew. I think Ryder may have outdone himself."

"You're only saying that because you're new here and haven't had that much of his stew," Honeymaren said dryly. "At least he's stopped adding fish to it. It never tasted right when he did that."

"I'd be willing to bet it's still better than Kristoff's cooking," Elsa said. "I don't know how he does it, but everything he tries to make tastes like moss. No matter what it's made of, no matter what he puts in it, it always tastes like moss."

She let out a laugh and shook her head. "Don't get me wrong, he's a great guy and I know he cares for Anna more than anything, but…he is the absolute worst cook I've ever met in my life. Personally, I blame the fact that he was raised by trolls and his best friend growing up was a reindeer."

Honeymaren let out a laugh of her own. "That probably has something to do with it," she said. "Maybe we can stage an intervention for them. Or at least get them cooking lessons."

"We already tried that. It was an unmitigated disaster and…well, long story short, Kristoff is not allowed in the palace kitchens anymore. At all." After a second, she let out another laugh and added, "I had a royal decree drafted and nailed to the kitchen door so he'd never forget."

"You didn't!"

Elsa nodded. "With the official royal seal and everything," she said. "I'll have to show you someday."

"Really?" Honeymaren said, sitting up with child-like excitement for a second before looking away in embarrassment. "I mean…I'd like to see that," she said. "I'd like to see all of Arendelle, someday, actually."

"Well, what's stopping you?" Elsa asked.

Honeymaren shrugged. "I don't know…I mean, I guess I've lived my whole life in the forest and wouldn't know my way around…" She looked over at Elsa. "But maybe, if I had the right guide…"

Elsa studied the herder's face for a moment before the meaning of her statement dawned on her. "Oh," she said in quiet surprise. She was quiet for a moment, then slowly slid her hand across the bed, lightly resting it against Honeymaren's.

"You know," she said softly, "I have been meaning to visit Anna. And I know she would like to see you again." She smiled. "Maybe we should go visit them together."

Honeymaren's eyes lit up and a smile spread across her face. "Really?"

Elsa nodded. "Really."

Honeymaren led out a small squeal of excitement and squeezed Elsa's hand. "Thank you!" she exclaimed. Then, as though acting on pure instinct, she leaned in and gave Elsa a quick kiss, catching them both off guard.

Elsa's surprise returned, as did Honeymaren's embarrassment. "Oh no…I…I don't know why I did that," she stammered, her eyes widening as she moved away. "I…I'm so sorry…I'll just go," She started to get up, tears forming in her eyes.

Elsa moved so quickly she surprised herself, leaning in and returning the kiss. Her heart leaped as she felt Honeymaren relax and kiss her back and she found herself wondering if this was how Anna felt when she kissed Kristoff.

When they pulled back, both of them were smiling.

"I…I should let you get some sleep," Honeymaren said, after a moment. "I've already been here longer than I meant to…"

Elsa let out a small sigh and reluctantly moved back to let her get up. She crossed the tent toward the door, pausing in the entrance way.

"On the other hand," she said as she slowly turned back around, a small grin appearing on her face. "It is rather late."

"That's true," Elsa replied.

"And I know my folks wouldn't be too happy if I woke them up while heading to bed."

"Also true."

"And my bed's probably cold, so it would take me a while to fall asleep."

A smile spread across Elsa's face as she began to understand what Honeymaren was getting at.

"So you agree, it makes sense for me to just…stay here tonight."

Elsa reached out and took her hand. "I can't think of a single reason why you shouldn't," she said, guiding her back to the bed.

"I was hoping you'd say that," Honeymaren said before leaning in for another kiss.


End file.
